Join us to learn all about The Olde Towne of Flushing Burial Ground!
The Olde Towne of Flushing Burial Ground dates back to 1840, initially set aside as a pauper’s burial ground. Most of the interred are African Americans and Native Americans, as well as some of the general public affected by several epidemics. The town soon referred to the site as The Colored Cemetery, and it has been known as The Pauper’s Burial Ground, Potter’s Field and The Olde Towne of Flushing Burial Ground.
In 1914 New York City assigned care of the burial ground to New York City Parks Department. In the 1930s, the commissioner of Parks, Robert Moses, in his vision of the growth of Flushing, decided to pave over the cemetery and make it a playground complete with a wading pool, handball court and seesaws. The Parks Department treated it as a playground until Mandingo Tshaka came along in the 1990s.
About the Speakers:
Robbie Garrison is the Co-Founder of the Olde Towne of Flushing Burial Ground Conservancy and a long-standing community activist. She hails from Philadelphia and has been a resident of the Flushing community since the 1960s.
Sally Mehreteab is a board member and webmaster of the Olde Towne of Flushing Burial Ground Conservancy.
Johnathan Thayer is Assistant Professor at the Graduate School of Library and Information Studies, Queens College, City University of New York. He was the instructor of a graduate public history course that produced student work focused on the Olde Towne of Flushing Burial Ground during the 2016 and 2020 academic years.
Lori DiBella Wallach, MLS, is an archivist specializing in oral history, digital preservation and community history. As Outreach Coordinator for Queens Memory, a digital archive jointly sponsored by Queens Public Library and Queens College/CUNY, her work frequently centers on the constantly changing demographics of Queens, NY. Wallach also works with local history and genealogy groups throughout New York City and on Long Island.
Black Historic Sites in Conversation is a series of virtual talks in collaboration with different Black heritage sites & cultural centers in the greater NYC area, about the ongoing work of preserving, interpreting, and celebrating Black history and historical figures.
This program is supported by the Mellon Foundation.